i need some advice about my new .177 crosman pelletgun........is it ok to use brake fluid as the lube for the compression chamber which uses compressed nitrogen as the propellant gas? The company recommends their silicone based chamber lube which i am sure would work but it is very expensive for such a small amount and i hear from people--not necessarily sure of their expertise-- that brake fluid is an excellent substitute which will not adversly affect the piston mechanism since it is used in very delicate auto transmission components for very long periods!!

DOT 5 brake fluid is silicone based and is not compatible with DOT 3 or DOT 4 brake fluids which are based on polyethylene glycol.

Maybe DOT 5 brake fluid works but if in doubt, I would stick to the stuff Beeman sells, it's not like you need to use a whole lot of it.
I'm sure that silicone oil is used based on its non flamible nature. Regular oils tend to "diesel" or compression ignite inside the compression chambers of high power air rifles.

I've been stocking up on some .177 and especially .22 pellets JIC they become scarce too. Ordered some from SG for $2.69 @ can for 500 .22. HP& Pointed. They may have the maintenance kits there too. I wouldn't take a chance with my expensive rifles with brake fluid if didn't have too. The beemans kit comes with some felt pellets too to shoot through with cleaner & oil which makes it even easier

You really don't need to lube a synthetic-sealed spring piston airgun's chamber very often- every couple of thousand rounds a tiny drop of lube will do. The PFTE piston seal is self lubricating, for the most part.

I'm still using the Beeman kit with the three types of lube, silicone cloth, oiling needles, etc that I bought in 1983, if that tells you anything. Worry more about the pivot points, barrel detent, etc.

And yes, airguns are a great training aid. If you can lean to deal with the weird springer recoil you can shoot anything. I need to dust mine off now that I think about it.

I would not be using any Glycol based fluid such as Dot 3 or 4 due to the hygroscopic (absorbs moisture) tenancies of it.

A while ago I sprayed a small about of silicone spray in my springer and cycled the piston several times to spread the lube.

Later that day I was shooting some stuff through my Chrony and decided to see what fps the air rifle was doing, first shot had the report of a .22 rimfire and clocked around 1350 fps.
I learned that day exactly what dieseling in an air rifle is, for the record the air rifle usually runs around 850-900 fps.

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